Personal Finance Daily: Tight budgets boost house-sharing

Personal Finance Daily NOVEMBER 22, 2011 Tight budgets boost house-sharing By MarketWatch Don't miss these top stories: Read more: Tight budgets boost house-sharing. The pros and cons of pre-paid credit cards Read more: Market still working off excess optimism. Are you old enough to remember "The Odd Couple"? How about "The Golden Girls" or even "Friends"? These hit shows depicted life for roommates of different ages and in different eras, but roommates have been around a long time. What's new in this economy is that the number of adults living in what the U.S. Census calls "doubled-up" households is growing. Doubled-up households may include multiple generations living in a house, or unrelated families or couples house-sharing to cut expenses. In her column today, MarketWatch's Ruth Mantell talks to couples who are apartment-sharing about why they do it, how they do it and what the benefits are. Also in today's Personal Finance news on MarketWatch, reloadable pre-paid credit cards have advantages, but these cards can cost you plenty if you're not careful. — Anne Stanley , Managing Editor, Personal Finance Tight budgets boost house-sharing Couples, multigenerational families and people with no relationship to each other are joining the growing ranks of those who are in "doubled-up" households. Read more: Tight budgets boost house-sharing. Watching your wallet: pre-paid credit cards From the MarketWatch Radio Network, Jennifer Kushinka explains the pros and cons of pre-paid credit cards. Listen: The pros and cons of pre-paid credit cards. INVESTING Very slow growth 2012 then long bear to 2020 What's coming? Much tougher times are dead ahead, possibly even a sequel to the painful sideways bear of 1968-1982. Bottom line, don't expect much out of stocks. Read more: Very slow growth 2012 then long bear to 2020. Market still working off excess optimism A major culprit in the market's recent decline is sentiment: Bullish excitement rose to dangerously high levels in the wake of the October rally, and that euphoria needed to be worked off. Read more: Market still working off excess optimism. Signs of life in the U.S. economy Although you wouldn't know it from the way the stock market has been behaving over the past month, the economic outlook appears to be brightening. Read more: Signs of life in the U.S. economy. ECONOMY & POLITICS Obama lobbies for payroll-tax-reduction extension A day after lambasting Congress for failing to reach a deficit-reduction plan, President Barack Obama is back on the campaign trail lobbying for an extension of a payroll-tax reduction. Read more: Obama lobbies for payroll-tax-reduction extension. Third-quarter growth cut to 2.0% from 2.5% The U.S. economy grew at a slower pace than originally believed in the third quarter, mainly because companies reduced inventories and did not invest as much. Read more: Third-quarter cut to 2.0% from 2.5%. Which countries aren't bust? Super-committee flop is nothing unique, writes MarketWatch commentator Brett Arends. There's an epidemic of bad public finances around the world. So which countries are still in good shape? Read more: Which countries aren't bust? Get the latest news on our mobile site: http://www.marketwatch.com/m MarketWatch has sent you this newsletter because you signed up to receive it. To ensure you receive this newsletter in the future, please add marketwatchmail.com to your list of approved senders. Sent to: kumaresan.selva.blogger@gmail.com Unsubscribe | Subscribe Copyright 2011 MarketWatch, Inc. All rights reserved. MarketWatch, the MarketWatch logo, and BigCharts are registered trademarks of MarketWatch, Inc. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy (updated 6/26/07). MarketWatch - Attn: Customer Service, 201 California St., San Francisco, CA 94111